The Hurt That Heals
by Vampyre-Gothic12glass
Summary: When Elena meets a perfect stranger at school, she convinces herself that he is going to be no more than a friend. However, as they become closer, Elena tells him something that changes their relationship... and only he can help her to heal from this trauma
1. First Meeting

As Elena put her books into her bag for the first two lessons of the day, she looked up and saw Caroline and Bonnie walking towards her. They reached her just as she was shoving her motorcycle helmet into her locker.

'Hey 'lena,' Caroline said with a grin on her face, as usual.

'Hey Caroline, hey Bonnie,' Elena replied, hugging both girls in turn.

'How're things?' Bonnie asked. 'You seemed pretty pre-occupied when you saw us.'

'Just thinking about the trig test. I'm fairly certain I'm going to fail.'

'Don't worry Elena, you'll ace it. Like normal.' Caroline assured.

'Thanks Care…' Elena began, but was interrupted by the arrival of Kol and Klaus, the Mikaelson brothers, and Bonnie and Caroline's boyfriends.

'Hey guys.' Elena greeted them as she locked her locker.

'Hey.' Klaus replied while he embraced Caroline lovingly.

Kol, however, looked a little preoccupied to be saying hello.

'Jesus, guys. Get a room.' Caroline chided Kol and Bonnie. They ignored her, and resumed their kiss.

'Blasphemy.' Klaus reminded her, teasingly.

'You know full well that, although I strictly speaking Christian, that I think religion is just a load of…' Caroline began.

'Hey, guys, don't mean to interrupt or anything, but we're gonna be late.' Elena stated as she started off down the hall to their trigonometry class. Klaus and Caroline kept up a steady stream of witticisms as they followed Elena down the hall.

Elena, busy greeting people as she walked down the hall, didn't notice that Caroline had stopped in their tracks, until she heard Caroline say 'Oh my god.'

Elena turned around and saw immediately why her two best friends had stopped. Just coming out of the reception office was a guy. He was around 5'9" and had thick black hair. Elena stifled a gasp as the stranger turned down the hall and began walking down the hall, the way Elena had just come.

It took Caroline, Bonnie and Kol to get Elena's attention before telling her that they were going to be late. In a daze, Elena followed Klaus and Caroline and took her seat at the back of the trig room. She couldn't get the image of the guy out of her mind. When the trig paper was placed in front of her, however, her previous nerves about failing resumed in full strength. The guy was never forgotten.

When lunch rolled round, Elena met Caroline, Bonnie, Kol and Klaus at their usual table. As soon as Elena sat down, Caroline and Bonnie launched into a stream of conversation about the stranger.

'I swear Elena, just as you turned around; he was looking straight at you!' Caroline started.

'Really? Do we have to listen to this _girl_ conversation while we eat? Emphasis on the girl.' Kol complained.

'Sorry Kol,' Elena began, 'but yes, you do.' And with that she resumed the conversation.

'He is, without a doubt, the hottest guy I have ever seen!' Elena gushed.

'Well, you haven't had any classes with him yet have you?' Asked Bonnie. 'Maybe he'll be in Alaric's history class with you.'

'Maybe…' Elena said, going back into her daze from the morning.

Elena was doodling in the back of her history book while she was waiting for Alaric to start the lesson, when a soft voice spoke, jerking her out of the daze.

'Is this seat taken?' The voice asked.

Elena looked up, and blushed. It was the guy from the hall. He looked at her questioning eyes.

'N…no its not.' Elena answered.

'Cool.' The guy said and sat down next to her.

'I'm Damon.' The guy said.

'Elena.' She replied.

'It's a pleasure to meet you.' Damon said as Alaric walked in and began the lesson.

'You too.' Elena replied and turned to face the front.

History was normally Elena's favourite lesson, however, today she couldn't focus. She was constantly aware of Damon sitting not even a metre away from her. Once or twice, Elena looked out of the corner of her eye, to caught him giving her a sideways glance.

History passed by in a blur.

As Elena got up to leave the classroom at the end of the hour, Damon caught her eye and smiled. Elena's brain was stunned. He had a great smile. She smiled back and walked out of the room, Damon's eyes following her the entire time.

_Meet me in the parking lot. Now. _Elena text Caroline and Bonnie.

They arrived almost immediately.

'What?' Caroline said.

'He's in my history class,' Elena said breathlessly, 'and his name is Damon and he has the best smile ever.'

'You spoke to him?' Caroline asked excitedly.

'Yeah. He was sitting next to me.' Elena replied.

'And…' Bonnie prompted as Kol and Klaus made their way over.

'And nothing.' Elena replied. 'That's it. He asked if the seat next to me was free, I said yes. He introduced himself. I introduced myself. That's it.'

'Oh. Okay.' Bonnie said, obviously disappointed that there weren't that many details to squeal over.

'See you guys later,' Elena started as she climbed onto her motorcycle and revved the engine. 'I'll text you later!'

And with that, Elena was gone.

About ten minutes later, Elena had parked her Harley outside her house, and was in the kitchen.

She grabbed a drink and, after washing the glass and replacing it in the cupboard, went upstairs and flopped down onto her bed, remembering the history lesson.


	2. The Mechanic

Chapter 2-

The next morning Elena woke up and got dressed for school before checking her class schedule for the day. She had double history today. This day was going be _interesting_, she thought.

When she arrived at school, Klaus, Kol, Caroline and Bonnie were standing in the parking lot waiting for her. She swung her leg off of her Harley and pulled off her motorcycle helmet.

'Hey guys,' Elena began as she was hugged by Caroline and Bonnie.

'Hey 'lena,' Caroline began, 'how are you.'

'Good.' Elena replied with a smile.

'Why the smile?' Bonnie asked curiously

'I have double history today.' Elena replied.

Caroline and Bonnie gave each other a knowing look, while Kol rolled his eyes, and Klaus just laughed.

'Typical girls,' Kol said in an aside to Klaus.

'I know exactly what you mean brother. One minute they're complaining when guys take too much attention of them, next minute they are scheming for a guy to ask them out.' Klaus said with a chuckle.

'We heard that!' The girls chorused.

'And we are not scheming.' Elena said indignantly

'We are just planning a possible conversation that Elena could have with Damon, the tall dark, mysterious and exceptionally hot new guy-stranger person.' Bonnie finished, while Caroline went over and kissed Klaus goodbye. The guys were heading to the gym for rec. and the girls were heading to Spanish.

Spanish, Trig and English passed by in a blur for Elena, as she kept reviewing the conversation her, Caroline, and Bonnie had pre-planned between her and Damon. She decided that she was just going to act casual. Ask him where he was from, what his interest were etc., etc., etc.

After break, Elena and Caroline had Sociology. Caroline kept running through Damon's possible answers for Elena's question. After a while though, Elena pronounced this a pointless, and they actually got some work done in Soc.

They met the others at their table in the canteen at lunch. For once, Elena was quiet as she quietly ate her lunch. She was suddenly really nervous about her impending conversation with Damon.

All too soon, lunch had finished and Bonnie was wishing her luck outside Alaric's history room. Elena took a deep breath and stepped inside. Damon was already there. He was sitting in the same place as yesterday. She took another deep breath and walked over.

'Hey.' Elena said, sitting down and getting her books out of her bag.

'Hi.' Damon replied with a smile

'How are you?'

_A damn well better than I was an instant ago_, he thought. 'Fine,' he said aloud. 'What about you?'

'Good. Bored with the day though.' Elena said with a smile.

'Yeah, it does seem to drag on, doesn't it?' He replied, mirroring her smile.

Her heart stopped as he smiled. His smile was amazing. It seemed to light the whole room. Elena was about to speak, when Alaric walked in. Damon smiled at her again and turned to face the front.

History sped by as Elena was contemplating talking to Damon after class.

She needn't have worried about building up the courage though. As soon as the double class ended, Damon was standing up by her desk, waiting for her. Elena looked up and jumped when she saw Damon standing about 30cm away from her. She dropped her textbook in surprise. Damon bent down and picked it up for her.

'Thanks,' Elena said gratefully

'You're welcome,' he replied with a customary smile.

Damon and Elena walked out of Alaric's room as Caroline and Bonnie were emerging from the opposite room. Their eyes bugged out when they saw Damon and Elena. They regained their composure as the two walked past them.

'Hey guys, how was RS?' Elena asked as the four of them walked down the corridor.

'Good. How was history?' Bonnie said, hinting with her eyes for Elena to introduce them.

'Oh yeah, guys this is Damon. Damon this is Caroline and Bonnie.' Elena said.

'Nice to meet you.' Damon said, knocking Caroline and Bonnie breathless with one of his smiles.

'I'd better go' Elena said to Damon.

'Yeah me too.' Damon replied. 'I'll call you later.' And with that, he was walking off.

Caroline and Bonnie walked behind Elena to the parking lot, still shocked by what they had heard Damon say.

'That was not part of the plan Elena,' Caroline started, after she had regained the ability to speak. 'We did not say to give him your number.'

'Yeah Elena, I thought you had given up on guys until college.' Bonnie reminded her.

'I have, but that doesn't mean they can't be my friends.' Elena said defensively. _And I'm going to keep as a friend. I'm not, I absolutely refuse to let him become more than that._ Just as she arrived at her motorbike, she saw Jeremy come running towards her.

'Hey Elena.' Jeremy began breathlessly

'Hey, baby brother,' Elena began, 'what's up?'

'My car won't start again. I've got Matt taking a look at it at the moment, but I know he's useless when it comes to cars.'

'okay, give me a minute and I'll be there.' Elena said.

'Okay.' Jeremy replied and ran off again, ready to protect his precious car from Matt's clumsy car-naïve hands.

Two minutes later, Elena was standing by Jeremy's car looking inside the bonnet, as Jeremy wrung his hands nervously. He loved his mini cooper. Okay, it wasn't the best car, but it a classic.

'I see the problem,' Elena said as she straightened, then let out a cry of pain. She had hit her head on the bonnet. 'Owwww!'

'What's the problem with Lisa, Elena?' Jeremy said nervously, completely disregarding Elena's cry of pain. Lisa was the name of his car, and he loved her to bits.

'I'm fine by the way.' Elena said sarcastically. 'The problem is that the main pipe to the engine has come off again.'

'Can you fix it?'

'Of course. Give a minute.' Elena said with a sigh.

30 seconds later, Elena had re-attached the pipe and Jeremy was starting the engine of his 'girlfriend'. Elena swore, that unless he got a girlfriend soon, he would end up marrying that car.

'Thanks, 'lena!' Jeremy called out the window as he pulled out of the space and headed for home.

Elena swung her leg of her Harley, put her helmet on, and revved the engine.

'Nice bike!' Damon called out as he walked past, making Elena jump and nearly fall off.

'Thanks!' Elena called as she sped out of the school gates and turned west, heading for the Gilbert residence.

Elena walked through the front door, dropping her keys onto the table with a clink, and headed into the kitchen, where the smell of macaroni cheese was coming from.

'Jer, stop sitting on the counter.' Elena sighed as she went to the fridge. Jeremy hopped down obediently and went to turn off the stove. He grabbed a bowl and poured the mac and cheese into it, before grabbing a fork and leaving the kitchen, heading upstairs to his room. Elena quickly washed up the pan, then went upstairs to do her homework.

She closed her door, opened the window, and put a CD on-KT Turnstall. This CD always helped her to relax. She took out her planner, and got to work.

Just as she was finishing her final piece of homework for Alaric's class, her phone rang. She quickly checked the time-7 O'clock. She'd better get dinner ready or Jeremy would start complaining. She answered the phone as she was walking downstairs.

'Hello?' She said into the receiver

'_Hey Elena_' a familiar voice echoed down the phone.

'What's up Tyler?' Elena sighed as she rummaged through the fridge looking for the prok chops that she'd bought the other day.

'_My car won't start._' Tyler said simply.

'Okay,' Elena sighed. _I swear I'm the local mechanic for my friends sometimes_. 'Where are you?'

'_Outside your house_.' With that, he hung up.

Elena put the chops on the counter and stepped outside. Sure enough, there was Tyler, walking up the path from his car. Smoke was billowing from under the bonnet.

'Tyler, what the hell happened?' Elena asked as she lifted the bonnet and was engulfed in smoke.

'Well, I kinda, put my foot on the accelerator and the brake at the same time as turning the wheel.' Tyler explained sheepishly.

'Well, for a start, never turn the wheel at the same time as pressing the brake down, and second, why the hell did you press down the accelerator at the same time as the brake?!'

'I was…distracted.' Tyler said, as Hayley (his long-time girlfriend of 4 months) stepped out of the passenger side of the car.

'Why am I not surprised?' Elena muttered to herself as she straightened up and went to the garage to get a toolbox. She emerged a moment later, carrying a big red metal box. She set in down on the tarmac next to the dying car and fanned away the smoke. When the smoke had cleared, she found the source of the problem: the pipe that carried the petrol to the engine had torn in half.

'Tyler, please tell me that you turned off the engine?' Elena asked hopefully, already dreading the answer that she knew was coming.

'No, why?' Tyler asked.

'Okay. Guys, step away from the car. Now.' Elena demanded.

'Why? Elena, what's wrong?' Hayley asked.

'Because. Otherwise, the engine will blow.' With that, Elena rummaged in the toolbox for a spare pipe and a spare cap. Tyler and Hayley were backing slowly away, looking at the car as if it was a rabid dog. Just then, Jeremy came out.

'Perfect timing, Jer,' Elena started. 'Get me the jack out of the garage, will you?'

'Sure. But that things heavy.' Jeremy stated.

'Tyler, go and help him.' Elena instructed. Tyler nodded and he and Jeremy ran off to the garage. Elena had to isolate the petrol, and quickly.

'Hayley, can you run inside, and go to the kitchen? Under the kitchen is a roll of duct tape. Can you get it?' Elena asked the girl. She nodded and ran inside. Tyler and Jeremy emerged a moment later, panting as they hauled the heavy piece of metal equipment down the drive. Elena set the jack up and started to life the front left side of the car. Luckily, Jeremy had brought the skateboard, as he liked to call it. She took the duct tape off of Hayley, who had just returned, and proceeded to tape the broken pipe together.

'Will that help?' Tyler asked doubtfully.

'No, but it will stop anymore petrol leaking into the engine cavity.' Elena explained as the lay down on the skateboard and pushed herself under the car. Automatically, Jeremy knelt down beside her and the toolbox.

'Spanner,' Elena said as Jeremy passed it to her, 'thanks. And get those two away from the car would you?'

'Elena, are you sure you can do this while the engine is running?'

'Yes Jer, but you have to shut up.'

With that, she pulled off the final nut that was holding the driver's panel to the bottom of the car. She pulled the panel off, and tossed it to Jeremy.

'Give me the spare pipe and the duct tape.' Elena told Jeremy.

'She wrapped the duct tape all the way around the origin of the pipe. She had to be careful. One wrong move and the car would blow. She decided to get Jeremy out of the way. She could move quickly if she needed to.

'Jer, get onto the path please.'

As soon as the words had left her lips, she heard a fizzing. Disregarding the spanner, she used her hands to loosen the cap of the pipe. As soon as it was loose enough to fall off, she grabbed the spare pipe and attached the new cap to one end. Then, she carefully placed the capped end of the pipe to the old loose cap. She quickly pulled the old pipe off and almost instantly put the new capped pipe in its place. Tightening the cap with the spanner, she pushed the carpet of the wheel well, up enough for her to reach the keys for the ignition. She grabbed them and turned. The engine stopped and stayed silent. Pulling the old pipe off the engine, she threaded the new pipe through the hole, before pushing herself out from under Tyler's car. She leant over the engine and pulled the pipe through. She attached another cap to the other end of the pipe, and, using the spanner, she tightened the cap to the engine. After returning to the underside of the car and replacing the panel, she removed the jack.

'There, done.' Elena said as she finished mopping up the split petrol and shutting the bonnet. 'Hayley, next time, don't distract Tyler when he is driving.' Elena chided her.

'Sorry, Ty.' Hayley said

'Don't worry about it babe. Thanks Elena.' Tyler said as he drove off.

Elena returned all the tools etc. to the garage, before going inside. Jeremy had already put the chops on, and he was just dishing up.

'Jeremy, you didn't have to do that.' Elena said.

'Yeah, well I have now.' Jeremy said, and placed a steaming plate of pork and veg in front of her. With that, she dug in.


	3. Red Balloons

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Vampire Diaries characters and/or plot lines**

**Please Read and Review!**

Chapter Three-Red Balloons

Elena woke up to the sound of pouring rain. Typical. She rolled out of bed and took a shower, taking her time and relaxing in the soothing spray. After Jeremy knocked on the bathroom door for the 5th time, she decided that she had better get ready for school. Luckily, it was a Friday.

When Elena got to school, she swung her leg off of her Harley and sprinted inside, out of the driving rain. Once at her locker, she checked her hair in the compact that she kept in her bag, and roughly shoved her helmet inside her locker, before angrily slamming it shut. She was having a bad day already, and school hadn't even started yet. Just then, Caroline and Bonnie walked up and gave her a hug.

'How are you today? All things considered.' Caroline asked gently.

'Already having a bad day.' Elena said simply.

'I know. It's really hard to deal with isn't it?' Bonnie asked, knowing exactly how Elena was feeling.

'Yep.' Elena said, as she started to walk down the corridor towards History. Her mood picked up a little when she thought of the fact that she would be seeing Damon again. _You swore he would be nothing but a friend_ her conscious told her. Elena sighed, the conscious was right. She had promised herself that, and she was going to keep that promise. It would be difficult though.

Damon walked up to her just as she was standing up and packing her books away at the end of history.

'Hey, how are you?' Damon asked.

Elena faked a smile 'Fine,' she said, as realistically as possible. 'What about you?'

'Rain getting me down, but other than that I'm fine.' He answered.

'Cool.' Elena said as she walked down the hall.

'Hey, could do help me with something later?' Damon asked.

'Uh, sure, what?' Elena asked, confused.

'It's nothing big, it's just that, well, my car died on me this morning. And you know, I was talking to Tyler, he's in my history class, and he said that you were the best mechanic in town.' Damon answered with a hopeful smile.

'Sure, I've got to do a couple of things straight after school, but why don't I come round and take a look after I'm done?' Elena asked.

'Sure, give me a minute, and I'll text you the address.' Damon said, thumbing through his phone contacts until he got to Elena's name. A couple of minutes later, Elena's phone beeped. She opened the text.

'You live at the boarding house?' Elena asked curiously.

'Yeah, it's been in the family for generations, since 1864, I think.' Damon said.

'Okay, I'll come by and take a look at the car later.' Elena said with a smile.

'Cool, see you later.' And with that, Damon was striding down the corridor to his next lesson

At lunch, Elena told Caroline and Bonnie about the conversation with Damon. Caroline was gobsmacked.

'You are going round his house to look at his 'dead' car?!' Caroline said.

'Yeah, so?' Elena replied, confused by Caroline's reaction

'Elena, that kinda, sort of, almost, sounds like a date.' Klaus said confidently from the opposite side of the table.

'Really?' Elena asked.

'Yes Elena.' Kol and Bonnie chorused.

'Oh' Elena looked down at her lunch and smiled secretly. The day was suddenly looking less gloomy.

When she got home, Elena walked inside to hear a girl giggle from upstairs. Seriously? Jeremy had brought his girlfriend Anna round again?!

'Shhh, I think Elena's just walked in.' Jeremy whispered as Elena was passing his bedroom door.

'OMG.' Elena said when she'd closed her bedroom door. 'Will he ever learn?'

She completed her homework in a half hour. She didn't have any except History from Alaric. She left her room, and went and rapped sharply on Jeremy's closed bedroom door with her knuckles. After a few seconds, Jeremy peered around the door.

'What's up?' Jeremy said.

'Jeremy, put some clothes on, and hurry up. We're lighting the balloons tonight remember?'

'Oh yeah! Give me two minutes.' Jeremy said and hurriedly went to put some clothes on.

Exactly two minutes later, Jeremy and Anna came flying down the stairs. Anna quickly kissed Jeremy and waved as she got into her car and drove away.

Jeremy and Elena arrived at Wickery Bridge and stepped out of Jeremy's car. They picked up the red balloons, candles and lighter and walked to the edge of the bridge.

From there, they each attached a candle to the bottom of one of the balloons and said a prayer.

'This is for you, mum and dad, hope your lives are still full of happiness, no matter how far away you are. Love you both.' Elena and Jeremy said, bowing their heads. Then, they lit the candles with the lighter, and let the balloons go. They both stood there, watching the balloons fade into the distance.

They stood there for about ten minutes before Elena remembered that she was supposed to be meeting Damon at his house to look at his dying car.

'Christ! I gotta go, Jer, can you drop me back at home?' Elena asked.

'Sure.'

When they got home, Elena grabbed her keys for her Harley, grabbed the helmet and her toolbox from the garage and sped to the Boarding house.

'Sorry I'm late.' Elena said when she had rung the bell to the front door of Damon's house.

'No worries. Come on in.' He replied.

Just then, a girl of no more than fifteen appeared around the corner.

'Oh, Elena, this is my younger sister Rose. Rose, this is my friend Elena.' Damon introduced.

'Hi.' Rose said shyly.

'Hey.' Elena smiled back

'Okay, so the car.' Damon said, leading her through the house to the garage at the back of the house.

'What did you say was wrong with it?' Elena asked as Damon opened the garage door.

'I dunno, it just died this morning.' Damon said evasively.

'Okay. Let me take a look.' Elena replied, opening the bonnet and peering inside. Damon was watching her the entire time. A smile was playing around the corners of his mouth, and he didn't know why. Maybe it was the way the garage light brought out the different shades of her dark-brown hair. Or maybe it was the fact that she wasn't like other girls. She loved cars, and mechanical (namely guy) stuff. She let out a soft laugh and straightened up.

'What's up?' Damon asked, faking worry and curiosity.

'Absolutely nothing. There is nothing wrong with car, Damon.' Elena said, a smile on her face as she realized what he had done.

'Why are you smiling?' Damon asked, sure she had figured him out.

'No reason.' Elena said nonchalantly as she walked out the garage, carrying her toolbox with her. Damon followed her. She walked back into the house.

'Do you want a drink before you leave?' Damon asked kindly.

'Uh, sure.' Elena replied, shocked by the question.

'Okay.'

Damon and Elena were sitting on one of Damon's couches in his living room, laughing.

'I'm serious!' Damon said

'You seriously went swimming in the lake under Niagara Falls?' Elena asked sceptically.

'He really did. I was there.' A voice said. Elena looked round to see Rose standing in front of the open door, keys in hand.

'Rose, where are you going?' Damon asked anxiously.

'To the Grill with some friends.' Rose replied, shaking off his concern.

'Do you have your phone with you?' Damon asked, his brow furrowing.

'Yes, dad. I will be in before midnight.' She said as she walked over and kissed him on the cheek.

'You'd better be, or there will be hell to pay.' Damon said, ruffling her hair affectionately.

'See ya!' Rose called as she shut the door behind her.

'You're really protective of her aren't you?' Elena asked.

'Yep. If anything happened to her, I'd…' He broke off. 'I'd die.' He finished honestly.

'I know exactly how you feel.' Elena replied.

'You've got a younger sister?' Damon asked.

'Brother. And he is a nightmare.' Elena stated.

'Really? How old is he then?' Damon said curiously.

'16, but he is a nightmare.' Elena stated. 'Although, I love to bits, and I don't know what I'd do without him.'

Damon and Elena looked at each other, and Elena lost herself in Damon's ice blue eyes. Silence descended between the two as they kept staring into each other's eyes.

'I should probably go.' Elena said reluctantly.

'Yeah.' Damon looked at the clock. 'iT's ten o'clock.'

'I'll call you tomorrow?' Elena said hopefully

'Sure.' Damon said with a smile. He walked her to the door, watched as she climbed onto her motorbike and waved, before riding off down the drive that led back into town. Damon sighed, and closed the door, a smile still on his face.


	4. Is it a Date?

Chapter 4-

_Please allow me to introduce myself_

_I'm a man of wealth and taste_

_I've been around for a long, long year_

_Stole many a man's soul and faith_

Elena woke up, rolled over and glared angrily at her alarm clock. What the hell was it doing on? She slapped the off button angrily and rolled over, closing her eyes again.

_Words like violence_

_Break the silence_

_Come crashing in_

_Into my little world_

_Painful to me_

_Pierce right through me_

_Can't you understand_

_Oh my little girl_

What the hell? Why had her alarm gone off again? She rolled over and sat up, looking at her nightstand. That's weird. Her alarm wasn't on.

_Words like violence_

_Break the silence_

_Come crashing _

_Into my little world_

_Painful to me_

_Pierce right through me _

_Can't you understand _

_Oh my little girl_

Elena looked around and saw her phone sitting on the desk. She jumped up, grabbed the phone and held it hastily to her ear.

'Hello?' She said rather breathlessly

'Hey Elena.' Damon said, sounding cheerful. 'Was I interrupting something?' He asked.

'Only my sleep.' She joked, glad that he had called

'It's 12 o'clock.' Damon said uncertainly

'Seriously?! Oops!' Elena said laughing as she opened her closet and started to decide what to wear.

'Anyway, I was wondering if you could help me with something.' Damon asked.

'Sure. What is it?' Elena asked

'Could you help me with Alaric's history homework. I'm totally stumped.' Damon asked

'Oh sure.' Elena was caught off guard. She was sure he was going to ask for tips on something car-related. 'When?'

'I'm guessing about 1?' Damon said.

'Sure. What about if you meet me on Wickery Bridge in an hour. I know a great place that always helps me to think.' Elena said as she brushed her hair out of its pony tail.

'Okay, I'll be there.' Damon said, a smile in his voice. Elena hung up and went to take a shower.

An hour later, Elena was sitting on the seat of her Harley when Damon's car pulled up. It was a sleek ice blue Camaro convertible. The colour was the exact same as his eyes. Elena shook herself, and kicked the stand for her motorbike down before walking over to him.

'Hey, how are you this afternoon?' She asked with a smile.

'Good. Sorry to wake you up. I rang a couple times but your phone just put me straight through to voicemail.' Damon said.

'Really? Jeremy must have turned it off to be irritating.' Elena explained.

'Okay, so where's this 'perfect study place'?' Damon asked.

'Follow me.' Elena said, picking up her bag and helmet as she walked past her bike.

After a couple of minutes of walking, they came to a clearing just inside a patch of woodland, a couple of hundred metres off the road. The clearing was lit up with sunshine and white blossoms littered the ground.

'Here we are. I come her all the time to study. It really relaxes me.' Elena said as she sat down, her back against a tree. Damon sat down next to her. Elena breathed in the familiar smell of her clearing and caught a tint of something else. It smelt like cinnamon. It was the smell coming off of Damon's jacket.

'Okay. So what part of the homework has you stumped?' Elena said, desperately trying to focus on his history homework issues as opposed to his intoxicating cinnamon scent.

'Absolutely everything.' Damon sighed hopelessly

'Okay. Well, let's start at the beginning.' Elena decided, pulling her history textbook out of her bag.

'How much do you know about the American Civil War of 1864?' Elena asked, thumbing through her textbook to the beginning of the chapter they were studying.

'Well, other than the fact that 27 civilians died when a bomb hit the church. Oh, and the fact that it was between the union soldiers of the north and the confederate soldiers in the south, absolutely nothing.' Damon replied, almost mesmerised by the way that the light caught the different shades of brown in her hair as she bent over a notebook, re-phrasing most of the textbook. He noticed that her script slanted slightly forward. It was very elegant. What seemed like an eternity later, she passed the notebook to him.

'Okay, read through both of these, and decide which one makes more sense.' Elena instructed and pulled out her phone, checking for messages before putting some music on quietly in the background. It was Poison and Wine by The Civil Wars, her favourite song next to Paint It Black, by The Rolling Stones.

Damon's head was bent over the notebook in concentration as he read the summary that Elena had written out. She was mesmerized by the way the light caught his raven black hair. It seemed to bring out rainbow highlights. Almost as if he felt her gaze, he looked up.

'This one makes a lot more sense.' Damon said, holding up Elena's notebook.

'Okay then. Now, we start the essay.' Elena said, tearing off her summary and passing the notebook and a pen back to Damon. He sighed but got to work.

He looked up barely two minutes later and asked Elena to read through the beginning paragraph. She noticed while reading, that his writing slanted backwards slightly, almost as if it were stretching.

When she had finished reading, she handed the notebook back to him with a grin.

'It's good, now finish it.' She instructed.

Around two hours later, Damon had finally got the seal of approval on his essay from Elena. Pages littered the grass around, from the amount of times she had made him re-write things.

'Okay, now you're done.' Elena said, happy that he had finished. She lent back against her tree and closed her eyes, absorbing the song lyrics (Poison and Wine, playing on repeat, as usual). She felt his eyes on her face, and opened one eye. She caught him smiling.

'What?' Elena asked him.

'Nothing.' Damon replied, looking away.

'Okay then…' Elena said, closing her eyes again.

Elena checked the time. It was half past six, and starting to get dark.

'I'd better get home.' Damon said reluctantly. 'I need to cook for Rose, before she goes out again.'

'Me too, I guess. I wonder what Jeremy's doing tonight?' Elena asked herself, already knowing the answer. He was probably with Anna right about now, doing what they always did… No, she wasn't even going to finish that thought.

Damon helped her up. She picked her bag and put everything back in it. Just as she was straightening up, a gust of wind blew around the clearing, blowing her hair around her face. Damon caught a lock of hair that had blown in front of her ear. He looked at it for a few seconds, before twisting gently around his fingers and tucking the hair back behind her ear. As they looked into each other's eyes, time seemed to stop for Elena. She hadn't noticed before, but his eyes had flecks of gold in them. He smiled gently.

Elena got back home, and Jeremy and Anna were sprawled on the couch, watching a movie. There was a half-eaten box of pizza on the coffee table in front of them.

'Good, you guys have food. I'm too tired to cook.' Elena sighed as she walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, before hopping up onto the kitchen island and sat there. Jeremy paused the movie and turned to face her.

'Where the hell have you been? I left you a ton of messages.' Jeremy said.

'Sorry, I went to revise and lost track of time.' She was telling the truth, after all, she had been revising…sort of. Elena walked slowly upstairs. Once in her room, she closed the door, grabbed her headphones and plugged them into her phone. She turned up the volume and laid down on her bed, thinking.

Nothing had happened between her Damon after he had tucked her hair behind her ear, but they were very close to kissing. She had to think about the situation she was in. She was falling in love with Damon, she was sure of it. It was little things he said or did, the way he smiled, the way his voice seemed to light up when she spoke to him. She needed to decide if she was ready to break the promise she had made to herself about giving up on guys until college. After all the business with Matt, she really didn't need to go through that again.

She took a shower as she contemplated breaking the promise for Damon. She decided to have an early night tonight. She went downstairs where Jeremy and Anna were making out on the couch. She coughed.

'Guys, I'm going to bed.' Elena stated.

'Okay?' Jeremy asked, unsure as to why she was telling them this.

' I want you to keep it PG please Jer.' Elena said, glaring at her little brother.

'Okay sis.' Jeremy said, rolling his eyes at Anna. Elena walked out of the room, trying to ignore the sounds that were coming from the kissing couple on the couch.

She went upstairs, turned her music on quietly and got ready for bed. As she was pulling her pyjama top of her head, she phone beeped. She picked it up as she climbed into bed, flicking the light switch off as she pulled the covers over her shoulder. She opened the text. It was from Damon

_I had a really good time this afternoon. Hope we can do it again sometime. Damon x_

Elena smiled to herself as she texted him back. Then she turned her phone off and fell asleep, dreaming of Damon's easy smile and gold-flecked ice blue eyes.


	5. Baseball

_Chapter 5-Baseball_

Elena woke up on Sunday. She sat up, and wondered what had woken her up. Then she realized that Jeremy was sitting on the edge of her bed.

'What are you doing in here?' Elena asked, confused.

'Waking you up.' Jeremy explained.

'Why? It's Sunday.' Elena replied.

'Yeah, but it's the finals of the National League today. Denver playing Virginia remember?' Jeremy reminds her.

'Oh crap! I totally forgot!' Elena cried, jumping out of bed, running to her closet and grabbing her West Virginia Thundercats sweats, hoodie and baseball cap.

Five minutes later, Elena ran the stairs, tucking her long brown hair up in the back of the baseball cap, when her phone rung. She hit the answer call button.

'Hey Damon, what's up?' Elena asked as she was grabbed bacon from the fridge. 'Hey, Jeremy, grab the door!' She called upstairs as the doorbell rang.

'I was just wondering if you wanted to come and watch the Denver: Virginia baseball game with me and Rose.'

'Really?' Elena asked as Matt, April, Klaus, Bonnie, Caroline, Kol and Anna came into the room, all wearing their West Virginia sweats, hoodies and caps.

'Yeah. I mean, you don't have to.' Damon said hurriedly.

'No, any other time and I would love to, but…' Elena started, chewing on her lip

'Who's on the phone Elena?' Jeremy asked.

'Someone. Go and get that.' Elena said sharply as the doorbell rang again. Tyler and Hayley walked in, their hands entwined. 'How about you come over here instead?' Elena asked.

'You sure?' Damon asked. 'I wouldn't be intruding?'

'Of course not. Bring Rose with you.' Elena said.

'Okay, I'll be there.' Damon said and hung up. Elena text him her address. Caroline and Klaus helped her to drag the dining room chairs and kitchen island bar stools over to the living room, beside and behind the couches. 'Can you help me to carry the chairs from upstairs down please?' Elena asked Caroline.

'Sure, but why? We've got the eleven chairs that we need.' Caroline said, confused as they walked up the stairs.

'Yeah, but Damon and his younger sister Rose are now coming round to watch the game as well.' Elena explained, looking away from Caroline as said this.

'You asked him to come?' Caroline said excitedly.

'Yes, yes I did.' Elena sighed.

'OMG! You are so totally going to be going on a date by the end of the week!' Caroline gushed as they carried the two 'emergency' chairs down the stairs and into the living room.

'You'll be going on a date with who Elena?' Jeremy inquired with a frown.

'Damon Salvatore. Apparently.' Caroline didn't give Elena a chance to answer.

'The new guy?' Tyler asked. 'The one who asked for a good mechanic recommendation?'

'Yes Tyler.' Elena said. 'The very same.'

Luckily, Elena was saved from more awkward questions, when the doorbell rang for the third time in the past 10 minutes. 'I'll get it!' Elena said as she practically ran out into the hall and pulled the door open. Damon and Rose were standing on the porch. Damon was wearing the typical attire of the household: Hoodie, sweats, and cap. Rose was wearing a cap, and a t-shirt with skinny jeans.

'Hey Elena.' Damon greeted her with a grin.

'Hey Damon, hey Rose.' Elena said. 'Come on in.' As Damon and Rose stepped into the hall, Elena lowered her voice. ' I should probably warn you. This particular group of people can get pretty…crazy during game time. And they like to embarrass new comers.' Elena said.

'Noted.' Damon replied.

They stepped into the living room and were greeted by instant hush. A very awkward silence followed.

'Told you.' Elena said under her breath as she went into the kitchen. 'You guys want a drink?' She called.

'Yeah.' Damon called back.

A couple of seconds after Elena had spoken, the conversations continued.

'Hey guys! The games about to start!' Klaus called over the noise. Jeremy turned the television on and everyone grabbed a chair and sat down to watch the game.

After the first hour-long inning, Elena and Matt got up to refill glasses and snack bowls. Everyone else started talking so Matt's next words were only heard by Elena.

'He likes you, you know.' Matt said easily as he turned away from the sink, glass of water in each hand. 'April, Jeremy, drinks up.' He called over as April and Jeremy walked over to claim their drinks off of Matt the bartender.

'Who does?' Elena replied when Jeremy had sat back down.

'Damon, obviously.' Matt replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 'Most of the first inning, his eyes were trained on you.'

'Really?' Elena said, a secret smile lighting up her face

'Yeah. Really. Are you gonna ask him out?' Matt said.

'I don't know,' Elena replied honestly, 'I kind of made a promise to myself after you and I broke up that I would give up on guys until I got to Whitmore College.'

'Really?' Matt said, shocked.

'Yup.' Elena said. She walked over to the living room balancing five bowls on her arms. Damon immediately jumped up to help her put them on the coffee table without dropping them. She said thank you and say his face light up in a smile in response. She wandered back over to the kitchen, her eyes sparkling.

'I repeat. Are you gonna ask him out?' Matt said, as they filled the last couple of bowls with a variety of crisps and snacks.

'I think so. Maybe.' Elena said, and carried the bowls over to the coffee table, Matt in tow.

Second inning had finished, and this time Klaus and Damon were the ones filling up the snack bowls.

'She really likes you, you know.' Klaus said, conversationally as he turned to the sink.

'She does? Really?' Damon asked, sounding sceptical.

'Of course. She couldn't take her eyes off of you for the entire second inning.'

'Hey. Can I ask you a question?' Damon asked Klaus.

'Sure. What's up?'

'Well, I really want to ask Elena out, but I'm not really sure how.' Damon started

'Then speak to Matt. Him and Tyler are the only two out of all the guys here that have had history with Elena.' Klaus explained, looking a tiny bit bitter for a second before Caroline came up to him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and drew him down for a kiss. The kiss between the couple became more heated, until Damon coughed. The pair broke apart; Caroline smiled once more at Klaus before walking back into the living room.

'So, there hasn't been any history between you and Elena?' Damon asked.

'No. Though it's not through lack of trying.' Klaus chuckled. 'But if you tell Caroline I said _anything _about that, you will die. She doesn't know I had a crush on Elena.' Klaus warned, deadly serious.

'Okay. I won't say a word.'

'Good. Now, let's see if Virginia can wipe the floor with Denver, shall we?' Klaus said, and with that, the third inning started.

They were all still celebrating the win about two and a half hours after the end of the third inning. They were all at the Grill, standing by the bar, and still gushing over the fact that Virginia had beaten Denver 3 innings to none.

'Hey, guys. We should probably go, I have a Lit exam first thing tomorrow, and I haven't revised yet.' Caroline said, looking at the clock. It read 10:30 pm.

'Okay, I guess I should probably get going to.' Elena said. 'Jeremy, you coming?'

'No, Elena. I told you earlier that I was staying at Anna's tonight. Remember?' Jeremy sighed as if him reminding Elena of things to do with him and Anna was the story of his life, which it kinda was.

'Oh, yeah. Sorry.' Elena explained. She turned to Damon. 'Do you want me to give you a lift back to mine so you can collect your car?' She asked.

'Yeah sure. See you guys later.' Damon said as he followed Elena outside. Caroline and Bonnie smiled secretly at each other as they watched them leave.

When they arrived back at Elena's, Elena parked Jeremy's mini cooper outside before stepping out and unlocking her front door. Damon followed her inside.

'Where's Rose?' Elena asked, suddenly realising that she wasn't following Damon.

'Caroline said she'd give her a ride home.' Damon explained.

'Oh, okay then.' Elena said.

He grabbed his car keys from the counter top, chucked his hoodie on over his Virginia Thundercats training t-shirt. He left with a cheerful wave and a call of see you tomorrow, which Elena returned, before he was in his car, and driving away down the street. Elena smiled. She was definitely going to break her promise to herself.


	6. Revelations

Chapter 6-Revelations

'Hey, can you help me with something?' Elena asked, breaking into Damon's reverie as they walked from Alaric's history room at the end of school on Monday.

'What do you need help with?' Damon asked.

'My trig revision.' Elena sighed. 'I've got an exam tomorrow and I can't do trig.'

'Sure. Do you want to revise at mine or yours? I'm guessing the study clearing is out of the question with all this rain.' Damon responded.

'How about you meet me at mine in about an hour?' Elena suggested.

'Sure thing. I'll see you in an hour then.' Damon said as he climbed into his Camaro and drove off. Elena smiled, sighed and wiped down the seat of her bike before starting the engine.

When she got home, she was relieved to see Jeremy and Anna were just locking the door behind them. She wanted the house to herself to consider her feelings for Damon before he showed up.

She unlocked the door and stepped out of the rain. She ran upstairs, dumped her bag and grabbed a towel out of the airing cupboard before she put some music on and started to towel-dry her hair. As she was drying her hair, she was thinking. Damon. He really was sweet. She loved his smile, the way his voice lit up when she spoke to him, the way his eyes lit up when she smiled at him, his raven black hair that always looked as if he had just rolled out of bed. And, above all, she loved the fact that she loved fixing cars, and that she knew more about cars than him. She'd never met a guy like that before. Most of the guys she had met were freaked out that a girl knew more about cars than them, and they tried to change her. A few of the guys she had been with, had been horrified that she liked fixing cars, and when she told them, they thought she was a freak and ended things immediately. But Damon…he liked her for her, the mechanic-y stuff included. She smiled and got changed, before going out to garage to clean her bike (it had got pretty muddy on the drive home from school).

Damon pulled into his garage, before stepping out of his car and locking the garage door. He turned the light off and exited through the door that led to the kitchen. He seriously needed to think. He grabbed a drink and walked upstairs to get changed before going over to Elena's. He automatically turned his CD player on and smiled when he realized it was the same song that Elena played on repeat when she was helping him with his history essay. He started thinking as he started to get changed. Elena. God, she was beautiful. He loved the way she smiled at all the little things he said and did. He loved her brown hair that had all the hazel highlights. He loved the way that she smiled every time she saw him, her beautiful hazel eyes that always looked so innocent. Above all though, he loved that fact that she was unique. She loved cars, she loved fixing them. She owned a Harley Davison. She was typically 'one of the guys'. She loved baseball. She was the sort of girl who guys could be friends with, could hang with without feeling like he was on a date with her. Every single other girl he had been out with had been the same. Beautiful, but too into their looks and shopping. He liked the fact that Elena was different. She was more beautiful than any other girl he had been with. But not just in looks. She had a beautiful personality as well. She always seemed to have time to talk to anyone that spoke to her, even if she was in a conversation with someone else at the same time. He really was whipped. He was completely in love with Elena. That thought made him smile again, as he continued getting changed, before chucking his trig stuff into his bag and going downstairs, where Rose was just leaving.

Elena looked up at the sound of a car in the driveway. When she saw it was Damon, she smiled before calling out 'In the garage!' and going back to fixing Jeremy's engine, _again_. She had had to order the parts in from the local hardware store because the car needed a new engine. Honestly. Sometimes she didn't understand her brother. Why didn't he just get a new car? She knew the answer to that: his mini cooper was a classic vintage. Her thoughts were interrupted when Damon spoke.

'Hey'

'Hey,' Elena said, jerking her head up from Jeremy's car and hitting the back of her head on the bonnet. 'Owwwwww!'

'You okay?' Damon asked, genuine concern in his voice.

'Yeah, I'm fine.' Elena replied. 'What about you?'

'Good. Shall we go inside and start the revision?'

'Hang on. I just need to finish putting Jeremy's car back together.' Elena explained as she leaned over her toolbox, rummaging through it.

'What's wrong with it?' Damon said, kneeling down next to her.

'It needed a new engine. Again.' Elena said, as she found the spanner and put it next to the assortment of tools she had laid out on the top of the jack.

'Seriously?' Damon asked, then quickly walked over to help her as she lifted the new engine out of its box. 'You need some help with that?'

'Nope. I got it.' Elena said as she placed it next to the car, before pulling the old engine out of the bonnet.

Damon sat down on the workbench and watched Elena bend back down over the mini. She pulled a couple of wires and pipes out, looping them over her arm, before picking up the new engine, and placing it in the gaping hole of the car. She quickly attached all the wires again, and carefully stood up, avoiding the bonnet hood. She wiped her hand across her forehead and turned to face Damon. She was about to speak when Damon doubled up in silent fits of laughter.

'What?' Elena asked, raising an eyebrow.

'You've got grease smeared over your forehead.' Damon said, struggling not to laugh. Elena looked in the mirror next to the workbench and sighed.

'So I have. I'll wash it off when we're inside.' She said, leading him through the garage into the hallway. She quickly went into the kitchen, got them both a drink and used a wet cloth to clean the grease from her forehead and cheeks. After that, she led Damon upstairs.

Elena took a deep breath. Then, before she could change her mind, she opened her bedroom door and stepped inside. Damon followed. He looked around with a somewhat calculating look, before speaking.

I presume your parents decorated?' Damon said, looking at the pink and purple walls. The sound of Elena's mind snapping was practically audible. She had already had a really bad day, and that comment just sent her over the edge.

'How dare you?! You have no idea!'

'Hey, Elena, I was kidding!' Damon said, trying to calm Elena down.

'Of course. Guys are always kidding when it comes to something that upsets a girl!' Elena screeched.

'Elena, calm down' Damon replied.

'No! I cannot calm down!'

'Do you always react like this when someone mentions your parents?' Damon asked, confused as to why she was reacting like this.

'Only when they take the piss!' She screamed.

'What do you mean?'

'My parents are dead you idiot!'

'What? Oh my god, I am so sorry. I know exactly how you feel.' Damon said, suddenly realizing why she was so tense when it came to talking about her family.

'You can't know! You don't know how they died! You weren't there!' With that, Elena took a deep, shuddering breath and dissolved into floods of tears.

Without thinking, Damon dropped his bag on the floor and wrapped his arms around Elena's shoulders. She shuddered again, and sobbed. Suddenly, she started screaming again. She was remembering the worst part of her parents death. 'No, no please! Leave them alone! Please! No! There's so much blood! Please, leave them alone! I can't do anything! I can't move! STOP!'

With that, the shuddering stopped and Elena shouted No!' once more breaking down in heart-wracking sobs. Damon stood there, holding Elena and comforting her for at least a further 5 minutes. When her sobs dyed down and quieted he spoke.

'No, You're right. I don't know. So tell me.'

He gently guided her to the edge of her bed and sat down. It didn't take her long to start talking.

Elena had been talking for about a half hour. Damon stayed sitting down next to her. All of a sudden, she stopped. She seemed to choke on the words before coming to a stop with a final sob. Instinctively, Damon put his arms around her shoulders and she leant into his embrace.

Damon bent his head down and gently kissed the top of Elena's head. Elena froze.

'Elena.' Damon whispered. She slowly looked up at him. She had got to know Damon in the past couple of weeks, and had started to think of him as a steady, reliable friend. When she looked up at him and caught his eye, she was overwhelmed by his gaze. It was full of love.

As she lifted her head, he lowered his. His mouth slanted across hers, a gentle pressure. She paused, but they were already kissing. One of Damon's hands circled the back of her neck, guiding her mouth to his. Her arms wound around his neck, drawing him closer.

He paused. He was sure that she would protest. She wound her fingers through his hair, marvelling at the texture. Like pinfeather.

His tongue flicked lightly over her lips, asking for access, to which Elena responded with a light moan. It seemed to Elena that the world was tilting, stars exploding.

All of a sudden, Damon's self-control slipped. His previous gentleness blossomed into a more demanding urgency. He nipped Elena's lips gently. Suddenly, Elena heard a car engine and broke the kiss abruptly. When the engine had faded, Damon lifted Elena's chin up again, his mouth brushing glancingly across hers.

'Elena.' He murmured, his mouth still on hers, so she could feel the movement of his lips.

'Yeah?' she whispered against his lips.

'I love you.' Damon replied.

Elena drew back and looked at him. He smiled. 'I love you.' He said again. She gently smiled back at him.

'I love you too.' She replied, surprising herself with her honesty.

'You do?' Damon replied, sounding shocked.

'Yes, I do.' Elena said smiling. 'Which is surprising even me right now, considering my track record with guys.'

'What happened between you and Matt, anyway?' Damon asked, curiously.

'Well… let's just say that when it comes to Matt, it's better if I hold him at arm's length. He kinda…sort of…slagged Jeremy and my parents off. It was unintentional, but…' Elena explained, skirting around the details.

'Seriously?' Damon asked, pulling her closer once more, and placing a kiss on her forehead.

'Yup.' Elena said, sighing. 'We'd better get this revision done.'

'Yeah, we should.' Damon said, reluctantly pulling away and reaching down to get his bag. He pulled his trig textbook out of his bag and laid it on the bed. Elena smiled at him again and Damon smiled back. Then they got to work.

When Damon and Elena walked down the stairs, Jeremy was just walking through the front door. Damon immediately tried to disentangle his arm from round Elena's waist, but Elena stopped him.

'Hey Jer.' Elena said.

'Hey 'lena, you eaten yet?' Jeremy asked, visibly staring at Damon's arm around Elena's waist.

'Nope.' Elena said


	7. The Morning After

**Author's Note: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I kinda lost the thread of this story, and on top of being ill, and doing GCSE coursework I haven't really been able to update, let alone write more chapters.**

**Now that everything is back to normal, and coursework is flowing more easily, I should be updating a whole lot more regularly.**

**Please Read and Review! **

The Morning After

Elena skipped downstairs the next day, a huge smile on her face, even though it was Monday and she had to go to school. She all but danced into the kitchen, past Jeremy who was sitting at the dining room table, looking at her as if she was insane, and over to the fridge. She opened the fridge, got the milk out and poured herself a bowl of cereal, jumping up to sit on the counter to eat.

'Morning, sis,' Jeremy said. 'Why are you so happy?'

'Because…well…I guess…Never mind Jer. I'm just happy.' Elena said defensively.

'Is it something to do with Damon?' Jeremy asked, already suspecting what the answer would be.

'What?! How did you come to that conclusion?' Elena cried.

'Because, as soon as I said 'Damon', you blushed as red as a tomato.' Jeremy snickered over his cereal.

'Hey!' Elena said, jumping off the counter and dumping her bowl and spoon into the sink. 'Okay, yes. It is something to do with Damon.' Elena conceded.

'I thought you had given up on guys?' Jeremy asked suspiciously.

'I had, and then I decided to break that promise.' Elena said as she walked out of the kitchen. 'By the way, I fixed your car yesterday.'

'Thanks.' Jeremy said.

Elena smiled, and ran upstairs to get ready for school.

Damon slowly walked down the stairs, being careful not to trip over the carpet as he text Elena.

_**Morning xx**_

He reached the bottom of the stairs, only to nearly get knocked sideways by Rose as she barrelled past him up the stairs from the kitchen, her satchel hitting him on the shoulder as she past.

'Hey, Rose, how many times have I told you, no running up the stairs?!' Damon called after her as he walked into the kitchen.

'Sorry D, I forgot something.' Rose explained apologetically as she walked back into the kitchen, where Damon was just sitting down with a plate full of bacon, egg, sausage and has browns.

'Its fine, just don't do it again yeah?' Damon asked, shovelling food into his mouth.

'Okay. I'm gonna go into town after school with some friends, so don't wait for me.' Rose said as she kissed her brother on the cheek and walked out of the kitchen.

'Sur thing kiddo.' Damon said as he cleared his plate away before turning to his currently beeping phone. He opened the text and smiled.

_**Morning to you too. Fancy coming to pick me up for school? My bike's engine decided to give out. I've gotta order a new one xx**_

He quickly text back

_**Sure, I'll be there in five xx**_

With another smile, he went upstairs to grab his bag

Elena stood on the pavement just as Damon pulled up. He jumped out of the driver's side, and walked over to her. She hugged him as he planted a soft kiss on her head.

'Hey.' Elena said

'Hey to you too.' Damon replied with a smile in his voice

'You're late.' Elena said, pulling back and looking at her watch. 'You said you would be here in five minutes. It took you six minutes.'

'I'm sorry. Traffic was bad.' Damon replied, laughing as he followed Elena to the car. 'Come on, it looks like it's going to rain.' With that, he opened the passenger door for Elena to climb in just as the heavens opened.


	8. Not So Veiled Threats

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story.**

**I'm really sorry to all my readers that vi haven't updated in a while, but I've been very busy with GCSE coursework, writing a couple of other stories and Xmas stuff. I promise to try to update a lot more regularly but I keep losing the thread of this story **

**Please don't stop reading and reviewing!**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 8

When they both got to school, they were met by Klaus, Caroline, Bonnie, Kol, Matt, Hayley, Tyler, and April. They both said hi, Elena trying to ignore Caroline's eyes almost bugging out of her head with questions. Elena sent her a look that clearly said _I'll tell you at lunch_. Caroline gave an almost imperceptible nod and turned to talk to Klaus as they all made their way to their first lesson of the day. Matt was walking slightly behind the rest, texting someone. Elena and Damon parted ways at Elena's English room. He kissed her quickly on the cheek and headed off down the corridor with Matt, Tyler and Hayley for Physics.

'How come you got out of his car earlier?' Caroline asked as her and Elena took their seats in English, Klaus and Kol sitting behind them.

'Leave the girl alone Care.' Klaus chuckled.

'No.' With that, Caroline turned back to Elena. Elena chose a very diplomatic response.

'I asked him to pick me up because my bike's engine has given out.' Elena would have gotten away with the sentence, if she hadn't of flushed deep red halfway through. Kol laughed and muttered under his breath 'women.'

'We heard that.' The girls said, turning in their chairs to glare at him

'Smooth brother.' Klaus laughed. Just then the teacher came in and the lesson began.

Damon and Matt were walking from Physics to History. They were talking about nothing in particular until Matt said 'Damon, quick thing. Elena is like a sister to me, I swear to god, if you hurt her, I will hunt you down and kill you. Don't tell her I told you this, but after we broke up, she made a promise to herself not to get involved with anyone until college. She broke that promise for you. I messed up pretty badly, and I don't want anyone to hurt her like I did. You got it?' Matt finished.

'Yep. Trust me, I would never do anything to hurt her. Ever.' Damon said, looking Matt straight in the eyes to show him that he wasn't joking.

'Good.' Matt said, and with that they entered History, Damon taking his accustomed seat next to Elena and the lesson started.

Elena and Damon walked into the cafeteria holding hands. They made their way over to Caroline and the rest of the guys and sat down. Caroline shot her a look that stated _start talking_. Elena pulled her phone out of her pocket and started texting, studiously ignoring Caroline. Caroline's phone beeped just as Elena put hers away. Caroline pulled her phone out of her bag and opened the text:

_**Come round to mine tonight. I'll give you details then E xxxx**_

Caroline quickly typed a response:

_**You better or I swear to god… C xxx **_

Elena smiled and nodded slightly before digging into her lunch and launching herself enthusiastically into the conversation.


	9. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**Author's Note: Hey guys. Sorry about the crappy time gaps between my chapters but i have major writer's block at the moment and i was wondering about what should happen in the next few chapters.**

**I've posted a poll on my profile, please vote. I really need help with working out what to put next**

**Thanks you guys**

**xxxxxxx**


	10. Author's Note Yet Again

**Hey,**

**I'm sorry i havent updated this story in a while. I kinda lost the thread on it**

**when get i regain where i was going with this, i will continue **


	11. Questions

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters.**

**Thanks to Bronte for giving me enough ideas to continue this story. Thanks Bronte. Luv you ;)**

Chapter 9 (Finally)

Elena walked through her front door after school, closely followed by Caroline and Bonnie. Klaus and Kol also walked through the door, not because they wanted to have this no doubt excitable conversation, but because they were the girl's rides.

'Okay, we're at yours. Now start talking.' Caroline demanded, flopping down on the couch and glaring at Elena. Klaus sat down next to her and put his arm on the back of the sofa, before leaning over to Caroline and whispering something in her ear. She giggled and nodded, blushing beetroot red.

'What did he…actually, hold that thought, I don't want to know.' Kol said sitting on the loveseat with Bonnie. Bonnie laughed and Kol gave his usual impish grin before kissing Bonnie on the cheek.

'Enough shows of affection please. There are single guys around.' Jeremy stated as he walked past the living room, heading up the stairs to his room.

'What do you mean, Jer? What about Anna?' Elena asked, frowning slightly.

'Oh yeah. She's been cheating on me.' Jeremy said, and with that, he had walked upstairs and closed his bedroom door behind him. Elena, Bonnie and Caroline exchanged worried glances before they heard footsteps on the stairs again. 'I'm going out, don't know when I'll be back, don't wait up.' Jeremy said, walking past the living room and slamming the door behind him.

'Poor Jeremy.' Bonnie said, evidently trying to save Elena from Caroline's intense questioning.

'Yes, yes. Poor Jeremy. We'll talk about that later. Now, Elena start talking.' Caroline said, turning her steel gaze from the closed front door and turning it on Elena.

'I can't start talking without a question to answer.' Elena responded reasonably.

'Fine. Question, question. Oh yeah, when the hell did you and Damon become official?' Caroline asked.

'We became 'official' on Sunday. He was at mine.' Elena finished. Caroline jumped in.

'He was here? Where about here?' Caroline masked, a smirk growing on her face as she jumped to conclusions

'In my room.' Elena said quickly,

'Seriously?! Nice one Elena!' Kol piped up, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

'He was helping me with my trig revision.' Elena quickly said, walking over to Kol and whacking upside the head. Caroline, Bonnie and Klaus immediately started laughing, as did Kol when he straightened up.

'In your room?' Caroline asked, quirking an eyebrow.

'Yes. He made some quip about my parents, and I flipped out. I broke down and started crying. He comforted me while I told him what happened to my parents. Then, I kinda, stopped and he tilted my chin up and kissed me.' Elena said, blushing and not going into detail.

'AWWWWW!' Bonnie said, breaking Caroline's curious gaze away from Elena. Elena shot Bonnie a grateful smile over Caroline's shoulder.

Elena and the girls had decided that Klaus and Kol should go home purely because, by the end of the conversation, they looked like they might kill the girls. The girls had moved up to Elena's room and were now talking about the Miss Mystic Falls competition, which Elena realized with a gasp, was only two weeks away.

'Shit! I haven't asked Damon is he will be my escort yet!' Elena fretted.

'Don't worry about it. Ask him tomorrow.' Caroline said. Just then, Elena's phone beeped. She looked at it. She had a missed call from Damon. She turned the volume back up and phoned him back.

'Hey Damon, sorry my phone was on silent.'

'_Hey Elena. How are things with Caroline's constant questions?' _ Elena swore she could hear his smirk

'Good. Hey, I was wondering, could I meet you at the clearing? I need to talk to you about something.' Elena said, biting her lip.

'_Sure. I'll see you in ten minutes. Love you._' Damon said

'Love you too.´ Elena said, before hanging up.

'AWWW!'Caroline said again.

'Yeah yeah. Alright guys. Out. I'm leaving in two minutes for my study clearing. Alone.' Elena said, shooting a glare Caroline's way.

'Okay, hey 'Lena. I want details. I'll phone you later.' Caroline said, walking outside, where Klaus and Kol were STILL sitting in the car, outside, waiting for the girls.

When they had driven off, Elena smiled and walked inside to get her stuff.

Elena walked into the clearing to find Damon already sitting there. He stood up when she arrived and walked over to her, grabbing her shoulders and pulling her into a hug. Elena laughed and reached up onto her toes to kiss him. She broke away and went to sit under a tree, patting the grass next to her, inviting Damon to sit. He did and turned to face her.

'What did you want to talk to me about?' Damon asked. Elena was about to speak when she looked at Damon's hair. She burst out laughing.

'What's so funny?' Damon asked, confused.

'You…have…pink…p…paint…in…your…h…hair!' Elena said, inbetween breaths.

'seriously!?' Damon asked. Elena grabbed her bag and pulled her compact mirror out, flipping it open and handing it to Damon. Damon examined his hair before closing the compact as he dissolved into laughter. They sat there laughing for a further five minutes until Elena calmed down enough to ask, 'Why do you have paint in your hair?'

'Well, I was re-decorating Rose's room in hot pink paint when you called. I had just finished painting her ceiling. I guess it must have dripped onto my head.' Damon explained as Elena burst out laughing again. It took a further ten minutes for her to stop laughing.

'What did you want to talk to me about anyway?' Damon asked when she was finally calm

'Well, you know the Miss Mystic Falls competition that is being advertising around school?' She asked.

'Yeah, what about it?' Damon asked.

'Well, I'm competing, and I need an escort.' Elena stated.

'Okay…' Damon said, having no clue where she was going with this.

'Well, would you be my escort?' Elena asked timidly

'Of course. I would love to.' Damon said

'Awesome. Meet me in the gym at lunch tomorrow, okay? We have our first dance rehearsal.' Elena said, leaning over and kissing Damon on the cheek.

Yeah sure. Hey, do you need me to give you a lift into school tomorrow?' Damon asked as they were walking back through the woods to the road.

'Well, I can take myself but I wouldn't mind a lift.' Elena said sheepishly.

'Huh? I thought your bike had died.' Damon said, looking curiously at Elena.

'Well, I kinda made that up so I could get a lift.' Elena said blushing.

'Seriously? You mean, like I did with my car?' Damon asked, having trouble hiding his smile.

'yup.' Elena said as they reached the tree border. And sure enough, there was Elena's Harley Davidson, sitting next to Damon's Camaro. He laughed.

'I'd better go.' Elena said reluctantly as she reached up and twined her arms around Damon's neck, bringing him down for a kiss. When their lips separated, Elena's arms stayed around Damon's neck, and his arms stayed wrapped around Elena's waist.

'I really should go. Otherwise, Jeremy won't be getting dinner tonight. If he comes home that is…' Elena trailed off as she finally realized that she might not be seeing Jeremy.

'Why wouldn't he come home?' Damon asked, concerned.

'Well, he found out today that his girlfriend has been cheating on him.' Elena sighed as she climbed on her Harley and revved the engine. Damon stood there as she drove off, her hair whipping behind her in the wind.


	12. Dancing and Jeremy

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters**

**Thanks again Bronte, for these ideas.**

Chapter 10

Elena, Bonnie and Caroline walked into the gym the next day at lunch, talking.

'Hey, Elena. Have you got a dress yet?' Caroline asked.

'Nope. I totally forgot all about miss mystic.' Elena answered honestly

'okay. We are going dress shopping on Saturday. All of us. Cause me and Bonnie need dresses as well. I'll see if Klaus and Kol can take Damon to get a tux.' Caroline said, walking over to where the guys were standing.

'I can't believe you dragged us into this Care.' Klaus said, kissing her head.

'Well, it was either you being my escort or Matt. Your choice.' Caroline said, smirking into Klaus' shirt, waiting for the bait to be set.

'No, no its fine. I'll be your escort.' Klaus said hurriedly, glaring at Kol, who was doubled up with silent laughter, and Damon, who had his head buried in Elena's hair to keep from laughing at his stricken expression. Just then Carol Lockwood walked through the gym doors.

'Okay then ladies and gents. Let's get to work.' Carol said and proceeded to instruct the couples on the right way to dance.

Caroline, Klaus, Bonnie, Kol, Elena and Damon walked out of the gym and towards their cars at the end of the practice. They were all laughing, with the exception of Klaus and Caroline, who were both wincing when their feet touched the floor. Neither of them was very good at the whole near contact thing, so Carol had strapped pieces of wood to the front of their shoes to keep them a set distance away from each other, however, the straps soon broke and so, Carol trod on their feet with her heels.

The guys had agreed to take Damon when they went to get their suits. They arranged a day and then Caroline, whose feet were in a slightly better state than Klaus', jumped (well, not literally, cause her feet were killing her) into the driver's seat and drove away. Kol and Bonnie climbed into Bonnies Vauxhall estate and drove home, which left Damon and Elena standing there.

'Did Jeremy come home last night?' Damon asked gently.

'Nope. I've tried calling him, but he hasn't answered. I'm going to try him again in a minute though. I don't know what to do.' Elena sighed as she tried to think what would bring her younger brother home that night.

'Well, you could try texting him and telling him that you really miss him and you're gonna cook his favourite dinner?' Damon suggested.

'Yeah, I'll do that. Thanks Damon.' Elena said, kissing him on the cheek and then climbing onto her bike.

'Hey do you want some help?' Damon asked

'Yes please. Follow me yeah?' Elena said and with that, her Harley had roared to life and was flying down the road, Damon's Camaro following close behind.

When she got home, she pulled her bike into the garage before running to unlock the door, leaving it open because Damon had just pulled up outside. She ran to the freezer and grabbed the meat from the freezer. She chucked it on the counter and preceded to check she had everything else she needed. She didn't.

'I need to go to the store.' Elena stated as she grabbed her bag and her helmet and keys.

'Okay, well, is there anything you want me to do?' Damon asked, worried because Elena was acting like a human whirlwind.

'Yeah. Here's Alaric's number. Can you call him and get him to bring the bottle over for Jeremy please? He'll know what you mean.' Elena said as she scribbled Alaric's number down on the notepad on the dining room table.

'You have our history teachers phone number?' Damon asked incredously.

'Yeah, he used to date my aunt before she drowned.' Elena said, skirting around the details.

'Ah. Okay then.' Damon replied.

'I'll be five minutes.' Elena said, tearing down the hall, opening the door and slamming it behind her. She jumped on her biked and tore down the road.

Damon was standing in Elena's kitchen, dialling Alaric's phone number.

'_Elena. What's up?' _Alaric answered

'It's Damon.'

'_Okay, what's up Damon?_' Alaric asked, concern for Elena and Jeremy clearly marring his voice.

'Jeremy's missing. Anna was cheating on him, so he went out and Elena hasn't seen him since last night. He's not answering his phone either. Can you bring the bottle for Jeremy's favourite meal please?' Damon explained.

'_Sure. I'll be there in 7.5 minutes_. ' With that, Alaric hung up.

Elena was just pulling into the driveway, just as Alaric stepped out of his car.

'Hey Ric.' Elena said, walking over and hugging him.

'Hey 'lena. Where's Jeremy?' Ric asked, concern and confusion evident in his voice.

'I have no idea where.' Elena said. 'I am worried sick.'

'Okay. Lets go inside.' Ric said, leading Elena through the front door, that Damon had opened.

I've brought the stuff with me.' Alaric said as he unpacked a carrier bag.

'What exactly are we going to be making?' Damon asked.

'Coq au vin.' Elena explained as her and Alaric started to chop the vegetables.

Three hours later, every thing was ready. Except Jeremy. He still wasn't there.

'Where is he? He text me back and told me he would come back.' Elena said, as she began to pace.

'Hey, Elena. Calm down. If he said he'll be here, he'll be here.' Ric reasoned.

Damon walked forward and wrapped Elena in a tight embrace, resting his chin on her head. Elena immediately hugged him back and started to cry.


	13. Chapter 13-Yet Again

Author's note: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've really lost the thread of this story again, and all the requests I've been getting, well, I wouldn't be able to do them justice at the moment so, I'm gonna mark this story as complete for now.

When I no longer have writer's block for this story, I might continue it, but for now

Arrivederci

Lucy

xx


End file.
